PHOTOS: MLS affiliated Twitter account leaks new MLS kits

Usually soccer teams do all they can to prevent certain information from leaking. One of those things is the new kits that come out every year. Those in the soccer media look for legit leaks, rumored leaks and everything in between because fans really want to know what their favorite team is wearing this upcoming season. It’s not often that your league is the one leaking the kits.

Today, the MLS National Sales Center, which is MLS’ school for future Ticket Sales Representatives, was teaching a class on social media. How fitting that they are teaching a class on social media and they enter a social media disaster. As the person running the @MLSNSC Twitter account was innocently posting pics from around the office and in the class, they neglected to notice all the new MLS kits hanging in the background.

What makes this even worse is that MLS always likes to delay all the new kit reveals until the week before the MLS season begins. The League markets it as “Jersey Week” and teams reveal their new designs at this time. Now, the “cat’s out of the bag” and it’s “straight from the horses mouth” so here are the pics.

First thing I notice is that some kits are the same as last year. In MLS, kits can be changed after two years so usually reveals alternate by year. For example, Sporting Kansas City is going to have a new home and third kit and keep the away this season. Next season, it will be the opposite.

Next, these look like they are the home kits for all MLS teams and they’re in alphabetical order. For some reason, Sporting Kansas City is ordered by “K” and not “S” but oh well.

In total, 16 kits are in these various pictures. Chicago Fire, Columbus Crew SC, Colorado Rapids and FC Dallas are not in any of the pics. NYCFC and Orlando City already revealed their kits as expansion teams so that’s no secret. Teams who are keeping the same home kit this year are LA Galaxy, Montreal Impact, New England Revolution, Philadelphia Union, Real Salt Lake and San Jose Earthquakes.

The teams with new kits revealed include:

DC United

While the DC United home kit remains the traditional black, they’re adding a bit more red on the sleeves.

Houston Dynamo

Houston is going cream sickle for their home kit as the orange on top blends into the white on the bottom. Blending colors seems to be the fashion trend on soccer kits. The US Soccer away jersey is doing the same thing.

Sporting Kansas City

It’s tough to see what Sporting KC’s home kit is because the picture quality when zoomed in doesn’t give much detail but it looks like they’re going plaid in some fashion, maybe gingham. Last year, Sporting KC was the only team to not have their new kit leaked and they were successfully able to reveal their kit.

New York Red Bulls

This looks like the old Red Bull kit because there have been reports of the new kit being leaked and there is a lot more red in the arms in the Footy Headlines article.

Portland Timbers

Portland is doing something different in terms of having what looks like a mountain on their kit. I’ve always liked their kits and their third kits are some of the best in soccer but there’s just something about pea green that makes me cringe.

Seattle Sounders

Seattle is staying with their traditional green. The kit itself isn’t a surprise but the lack of punctuation in the collar that’s supposedly on the kit gives someone a bit more than they bargained for.

Toronto FC

Looks like Toronto FC is going for a strict red kit. That’s a shame because their home kit last year had the maple leaf superimposed over the kit and it had personality. This just looks like a regular red t-shirt.

Vancouver Whitecaps

Vancouver is also blending their colors as the kit is mostly white with a bit of blue sprinkled in the top of the kit. Looks pretty good.

Just a suggestion MLS, maybe you shouldn’t have “Jersey Week” the week before the season because that’s just way too long and most the kits will be revealed anyway. I understand that revealing these kits increases interest and for the beginning of the MLS season but for crying out loud, the League just leaked seven or eight of them on an MLS affiliated Twitter account. Just reveal the kits right after the MLS season ends and then that way, MLS can capitalize on the holiday season. It’s insane to think that MLS wouldn’t want to sell these new kits in December so people can have them under their Christmas tree and instead sell them in March. Okay MLS, do your thing. I guess you know more than me on this. I just think that if you’re trying to sell kits, do it during the busiest retail period of the year. That just seems like common sense.

Special thanks to our friends at Total MLS for their input in the story. Make sure you check out their page for all the new MLS kit leaks and the current MLS news.

About Phillip Bupp

Producer/editor of the Awful Announcing Podcast and Short and to the Point. News editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. Highlight consultant for Major League Soccer as well as a freelance writer for hire. Opinions are my own but feel free to agree with them. Follow me on Twitter and Instagram @phillipbupp

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